Holy bejeezus ...
Diana Nyad: I broke many records in my prime as a long-distance swimmer back in the 1970’s, in my twenties. For my world record—102.5 continuous miles from the Bahamas to Florida in 1979—and other swims, such as breaking the 50-year-old mark for circling Manhattan Island ... Yet my dream of swimming from Cuba to Florida was dashed in 1978, after fighting stiff winds and huge seas for 41hrs, 49 mins, and still not reaching the Florida coast ...
... Until a year ago, I hadn’t swum a stroke for 31 years. Swimmer’s burnout gripped me to the point that I could have sworn I would never, ever swim a lap again in my life. But approaching 60 last year threw me into the existential angst of wondering what I had done with my life ... I started swimming a few laps, just to take some pressure off the knees from all the other activities I enjoy.
My workouts escalated. My motivation started to burn like a fire in my soul. One day I was driving, after a long swim, and I stopped and looked hard in the rearview mirror. And I said to myself: This is one dream I actually could go back and achieve. At 60, I could swim from Cuba to Florida. This time, without a shark cage.
But first, a little warmup swim ...
AboutDiana: On July 10th, at the age of 60, legendary open-water swimmer Diana Nyad will attempt to complete her first marathon swim in over 30 years. Nyad's triumphant return to long-distance swimming till take her 50 miles off the Florida Coast to begin a consecutive 24-hour swim through the Gulf Stream's open-water and back to the Florida shoreline, without a shark cage.
CNN Health: Diana Nyad chases a dream
Diana's Website
Wow.
It's hard to fathom how someone could swim continuously for 50 hours. That kind of endurance is just staggering.
Agreed. Diana Nyad's swim has to be the physiological equivalent of a moon shot. Right at the limit of what a human being can endure. Here are just a few of the things she had to contend with:
Thermoregulation. She was immersed for 53 hours. The water was colder than her body, which meant she had to replace the heat lost to the water with heat generated by metabolism and exercise. But she couldn't get too hot! It's quite a balancing act.
Hydration. Had to get enough water, frequently enough, but not too much, and not too often.
Nutrition. Had to stay fueled, with same constraints as water, plus not become nauseated.
Saltwater. Continuous exposure to non-isotonic saltwater over 53 hours is another dehydrator. Her lips showed the effects at the end.
She swam at a rate of about 50 strokes per minute for 53 hours. That's about 160,000 strokes.
Breathing. Effects of 80,000 breaths of moist, salty air on respiration. How did she keep from getting too much salt in her lungs? Also, she is known to suffer from asthma.
Suit mechanics. 160,000 repetitions is a lot. She could not afford to have even a little abrasion from her suit, anywhere.
Stroke mechanics. Her stroke mechanics had to be impeccably clean. She could not afford to have any impingement, anywhere, or allow any inflammation to develop, even in the presence of waves.
Psychology. We've all wanted to quit halfway through our measley little 1650s, imagine what she must have felt like at 55 miles, halfway through hers.
And this part I find unimaginable ...
Sleep deprivation. Imagine sustaining all of the above, wtih acute sleep deprivation. She was awake, and swimming, for more than two whole days. She had to keep her focus, and keep going, while her brain was telling her lord only knows what. Two sleepless nights can induce existential depression, and even hallucinations. Yet she kept going. Diana Nyad is one tough critter.
She survived all of that, and was still able to walk up onto the beach, and make a little speech.
Staggering is a good word.
It's hard to fathom how someone could swim continuously for 50 hours. That kind of endurance is just staggering.
Agreed. Diana Nyad's swim has to be the physiological equivalent of a moon shot. Right at the limit of what a human being can endure. Here are just a few of the things she had to contend with:
Thermoregulation. She was immersed for 53 hours. The water was colder than her body, which meant she had to replace the heat lost to the water with heat generated by metabolism and exercise. But she couldn't get too hot! It's quite a balancing act.
Hydration. Had to get enough water, frequently enough, but not too much, and not too often.
Nutrition. Had to stay fueled, with same constraints as water, plus not become nauseated.
Saltwater. Continuous exposure to non-isotonic saltwater over 53 hours is another dehydrator. Her lips showed the effects at the end.
She swam at a rate of about 50 strokes per minute for 53 hours. That's about 160,000 strokes.
Breathing. Effects of 80,000 breaths of moist, salty air on respiration. How did she keep from getting too much salt in her lungs? Also, she is known to suffer from asthma.
Suit mechanics. 160,000 repetitions is a lot. She could not afford to have even a little abrasion from her suit, anywhere.
Stroke mechanics. Her stroke mechanics had to be impeccably clean. She could not afford to have any impingement, anywhere, or allow any inflammation to develop, even in the presence of waves.
Psychology. We've all wanted to quit halfway through our measley little 1650s, imagine what she must have felt like at 55 miles, halfway through hers.
And this part I find unimaginable ...
Sleep deprivation. Imagine sustaining all of the above, wtih acute sleep deprivation. She was awake, and swimming, for more than two whole days. She had to keep her focus, and keep going, while her brain was telling her lord only knows what. Two sleepless nights can induce existential depression, and even hallucinations. Yet she kept going. Diana Nyad is one tough critter.
She survived all of that, and was still able to walk up onto the beach, and make a little speech.
Staggering is a good word.
